Interview attire: Yes, it does matter

At a recent gathering of job seekers, it was interesting to see that some took their job search more seriously than others. How could I tell? The most obvious way was the way they weredressed.

Most job seekers work on strengthening their interviewing skills and spend countless hours reworking their resume while overlooking a very big part of the interview process: The clothes they wear to the interview.

Lizandra Vega, an executive recruiter and image consultant, says “a professional image can easily be projected by the choice of clothes, accessories and appearance. Visual cues are very important and play a role in developing chemistry.”

Here’s an example: Recently, a job candidate flew to another city for an interview. He landed in the right city — his suit didn’t. He arrived late at night dressed in well-worn khakis, loafers, a denim shirt and a casual jacket. While his interview suit was flying across the country, he was left wondering what to wear to the interview, which was first thing in the morning. He decided to purchase a tie and shirt in the hotel’s clothing shop and hoped his luggage would appear.

Morning came, but his suit didn’t, so he made the best of an unfortunate situation. He met with the employer on time, and while he was mentally prepared for questions he did admit he felt self-conscious wearing a nice tie and shirt with frayed khakis. While exchanging pleasantries, he noticed his potential boss looking at his clothes. He explained his situation and apologized for his appearance, hoping the employer would understand.

He was not called back for a second round of interviews, although he was a talented professional with many accomplishments and successes in his industry. Looking back, he can’t help but wonder how his attire may have influenced the interview.

Clothes do send a message about your judgment. Employees are representatives of the employer, and whether it’s fair or not, your clothes help create a first impression.

Does the choice of colors make a difference?

Yes. According to Vega, navy blue is still the tried-and-true color and a safe bet for interview attire because it is versatile, and it can be updated easily with complementary colors.

A lot of job seekers seem to continue to rely on black for their primary interview dress however black can convey a message of power, knowledge or authority. Wearing black on the first round of interviews might send an overpowering message. That’s why navy blue is the best choice for your first meeting. Save black for the final interview where you would most likely be meeting the senior management team.

Wearing red is a bold choice and could be an option for a sales position where sending an aggressive message might be considered a positive. A muted red would be a better choice than a bright, dynamic red.

Brown appears to project honesty, integrity and can be a safe choice for first or second interviews, as is the color green.

Pink is risky, because although it is a popular color, it is associated more with social or romantic events than with work settings.

Choosing what to wear and how you want to represent your style to potential employers is highly personal, and if you are serious about landing an opportunity, you need to take into account the nonverbal messages that colors can send.

Job searching is not the time to show your artistic side with clothes unless you are targeting a field where that’s expected.

Vega offers another suggestion about choosing interview clothes, “Think of using your personal style as a way to associate with a specific industry. It’s the first step in creating a perception.” Dressing the part is alive and well in the workplace.

As for the candidate I mentioned earlier, he will probably never know the real reason he was not contacted for another interview. His attire was out of the norm, and he failed to project a professional image. Even though it sounds trite, clothes do make a statement about you, and that’s part of the hiring process.